Isolation techniques for reducing dark current in cmos image sensors

ABSTRACT

Isolation methods and devices for isolating regions of a semiconductor device. The isolation method and structure include forming an isolating trench in an active area and filling the trench with a doped conductive material containing silicon. Suitable conductive materials containing silicon include polysilicon and silicon-germanium. There is also provided a method and structure for isolating the regions by providing a trench in an active area of a substrate, growing an epitaxial layer in the trench to fill the trench or to partially fill the trench and depositing an insulating material over the epitaxial layer and within the trench to completely fill the trench.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application is a divisional application of Ser. No.10/925,917, filed Aug. 26, 2004, which is a divisional application ofSer. No. 10/291,772, filed Nov. 12, 2002, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,888,214,issued May 3, 2005, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein byreference in their entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to semiconductor devices, andmore particularly, to trench isolation technology for use insemiconductor devices, including CMOS image sensors.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In silicon integrated circuit (IC) fabrication, it is often necessary toisolate semiconductor devices formed in the substrate. This is true formany semiconductor memory devices, for example, DRAM, flash memory,SRAM, microprocessors, DSP and ASIC. The individual pixels of a CMOSimage sensor also need to be isolated from each other.

A CMOS image sensor circuit includes a focal plane array of pixel cells,each one of the cells including a photogate, photoconductor, orphotodiode overlying a charge accumulation region within a substrate foraccumulating photo-generated charge. Each pixel cell may include atransistor for transferring charge from the charge accumulation regionto a floating diffusion node and a transistor, for resetting thediffusion node to a predetermined charge level prior to chargetransference. The pixel cell may also include a source followertransistor for receiving and amplifying charge from the diffusion nodeand an access transistor for controlling the readout of the cellcontents from the source follower transistor.

In a CMOS image sensor, the active elements of a pixel cell perform thenecessary functions of: (1) photon to charge conversion; (2)accumulation of image charge; (3) transfer of charge to the floatingdiffusion node accompanied by charge amplification; (4) resetting thefloating diffusion node to a known state before the transfer of chargeto it; (5) selection of a pixel for readout; and (6) output andamplification of a signal representing pixel charge from the floatingdiffusion node. Photo charge may be amplified when it moves from theinitial charge accumulation region to the floating diffusion node. Thecharge at the floating diffusion node is typically converted to a pixeloutput voltage by a source follower output transistor. Thephotosensitive element of a CMOS image sensor pixel is typically eithera depleted p-n junction photodiode or a field induced depletion regionbeneath a photogate. A photon impinging on a particular pixel of aphotosensitive device may diffuse to an adjacent pixel, resulting indetection of the photon by the wrong pixel, i.e. cross-talk. Therefore,CMOS image sensor pixels must be isolated from one another to avoidpixel cross talk. In the case of CMOS image sensors, which areintentionally fabricated to be sensitive to light, it is advantageous toprovide both electrical and optical isolation between pixels.

CMOS image sensors of the type discussed above are generally known asdiscussed, for example, in Nixon et al., “256.times.256 CMOS ActivePixel Sensor Camera-on-a-Chip,” IEEE Journal of Solid-State Circuits,Vol. 31(12), pp. 2046-2050 (1996); and Mendis et al., “CMOS Active PixelImage Sensors,” IEEE Transactions on Electron Devices, Vol. 41(3), pp.452-453 (1994). See also U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,177,333 and 6,204,524, whichdescribe operation of conventional CMOS image sensors, the contents ofwhich are incorporated herein by reference.

Shallow trench isolation (STI) is one technique, which can be used toisolate pixels, devices or circuitry from one another. In general, atrench is etched into the substrate and filled with a dielectric toprovide a physical and electrical barrier between adjacent pixels,devices, or circuitry. Refilled trench structures, for example, areformed by etching a trench by a dry anisotropic or other etching processand then filling it with a dielectric such as a chemical vapor deposited(CVD) silicon dioxide (SiO₂). The filled trench is then planarized by anetch-back process so that the dielectric remains only in the trench andits top surface remains level with that of the silicon substrate. Thedepth of a shallow trench is generally from about 2000 to about 2500Angstroms.

One drawback associated with shallow trench isolation in the case ofCMOS image sensors is cross-talk from a photon impinging on a particularpixel of a photosensitive device causing changes that may diffuse underthe shallow trench isolation structure to an adjacent pixel. Anotherdrawback is that a hole accumulation layer along the sidewall of thetrench is relatively small since it is limited by the depth of theshallow trenches.

One technique which may be used to improve pixel isolation in CMOS imagesensors is to implant dopants beneath the isolation region; however, ithas been found that this may contribute undesirably to pixel darkcurrent. Minimizing dark current in the photodiode is a key deviceoptimization step in CMOS image sensor fabrication.

It is desirable to provide an isolation technique that preventscross-talk between pixels while reducing dark current or current leakageas much as possible. It is also desirable to provide an isolationtechnique while increasing a hole accumulation region adjacent a pixelisolation region.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one aspect, the invention provides a structure for isolating areas ina semiconductor device having a trench filled with a conductive materialcontaining silicon formed in an active layer of a substrate to isolateadjacent regions. The conductive material containing silicon may bedoped with n-type or p-type dopants prior to or after deposition of thematerial. Preferred conductive materials containing silicon includepolysilicon and silicon-germanium. In another aspect, the inventionprovides forming a trench adjacent an active layer of a substrate,growing an epitaxial layer to partially fill the trench and depositingan insulating material over the epitaxial layer and within the trench tocompletely fill the trench.

These and other features and advantages of the invention will be moreapparent from the following detailed description that is provided inconnection with the accompanying drawings and illustrate exemplaryembodiments of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A is a top plan view of an exemplary CMOS image sensor fragment;

FIG. 1B is a diagrammatic side sectional view of the FIG. 1A imagesensor fragment taken along line 1B-1B;

FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic side sectional view of a CMOS image sensorfragment showing a trench in process in accordance with a thirdembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic side sectional view of a CMOS image sensorfragment showing a trench at a processing step subsequent to that shownin FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic side sectional view of a CMOS image sensorfragment showing a trench at a processing step subsequent to that shownin FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a diagrammatic side sectional view of a CMOS image sensorfragment showing a trench at a processing step subsequent to that shownin FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a diagrammatic side sectional view of a CMOS image sensorfragment incorporating the trench of FIGS. 4 and 5;

FIG. 7 is a diagrammatic side sectional view of a CMOS image sensorfragment showing a trench in process in accordance with a secondembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a diagrammatic side sectional view of a CMOS image sensorfragment showing a trench at a processing step subsequent to that shownin FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a diagrammatic side sectional view of a CMOS image sensorfragment showing a trench at a processing step subsequent to that shownin FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a diagrammatic side sectional view of a CMOS image sensorfragment showing a trench at a processing step subsequent to that shownin FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a diagrammatic side sectional view of a CMOS image sensorfragment showing a trench at a processing step subsequent to that shownin FIG. 10;

FIG. 12 is a diagrammatic side sectional view of a CMOS image sensorfragment showing a trench in process in accordance with a thirdembodiment of the present invention at a processing step subsequent tothat shown in FIG. 10;

FIG. 13 is a diagrammatic side sectional view of a CMOS image sensorfragment incorporating the trench of FIG. 12;

FIG. 14 is a diagrammatic side sectional view of a CMOS image sensorfragment incorporating the trench of FIG. 13; and

FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram of a processor system incorporating aCMOS image sensor constructed in accordance with the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In the following detailed description, reference is made to theaccompanying drawings, which form a part hereof, and in which is shownby way, of illustration of specific embodiments in which the inventionmay be practiced. These embodiments are described in sufficient detailto enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention, and it isto be understood that other embodiments may be utilized, and thatstructural, logical and electrical changes may be made without departingfrom the spirit and scope of the present invention.

The terms “wafer” and “substrate” are to be understood as includingsilicon, silicon-on-insulator (SOI), or silicon-on-sapphire (SOS)technology, doped and undoped semiconductors, epitaxial layers ofsilicon supported by a base semiconductor foundation, and othersemiconductor structures. Furthermore, when reference is made to a“wafer” or “substrate” in the following description, previous processsteps may have been utilized to form regions or junctions in the basesemiconductor structure or foundation. In addition, the semiconductorneed not be silicon-based, but could be based on silicon-germanium,germanium, or gallium-arsenide.

The term “pixel” refers to a picture element unit cell containing aphotosensor and transistors for converting electromagnetic radiation toan electrical signal. For purposes of illustration, a representativepixel is illustrated in the figures and description herein, andtypically fabrication of all pixels in an image sensor will proceedsimultaneously in a similar fashion.

Applicants propose several trench isolation techniques to isolate areasof semiconductor devices and in an exemplary embodiment to minimize darkcurrent and suppress leakage current in CMOS image sensors, as describedbelow with reference to FIGS. 2-15. To better illustrate thesetechniques, a brief description of an exemplary CMOS image sensor pixelis described first with reference to FIGS. 1A and 1B hereinbelow.However, it should be noted that the invention is not limited to CMOSimage sensors and may be used in any suitable device, for example, aDRAM, flash memory, SRAM, microprocessor, DSP or ASIC.

Referring now to FIGS. 1A and 1B, a semiconductor wafer fragment of anexemplary CMOS image sensor four-transistor (4T) pixel, generallydesignated by reference numeral 10, is shown. It should be noted thatwhile FIGS. 1A-1B show the use of a transfer gate 50 and associatedtransistor, the transfer gate 50 provides advantages, but is notrequired. Thus, the invention may be used in any CMOS imager including,for example, a three transistor (3T) environment where the transfer gateis omitted and an n-type charge collection region of a photodiode isconnected with an n-type diffusion region 21. The CMOS image sensor 10generally comprises a charge collection region 21 for collecting chargesgenerated by light incident on the pixel and transfer gate 50 fortransferring photoelectric charges from the collection region 21 to asensing node, typically a floating diffusion region 25. The floatingdiffusion region is electrically connected to the gate of an outputsource follower transistor. The pixel also includes a reset transistor40 for resetting the sensing node to a predetermined voltage beforesensing a signal, a source follower transistor 60 which receives at itsgate an electrical signal from the sensing node 25, and a row selecttransistor 80 for outputting a signal from the source followertransistor 60 to an output terminal in response to an address signal.

The exemplary CMOS image sensor uses a pinned photodiode as the chargecollection region 21. The pinned photodiode is termed such since thepotential in the photodiode is pinned to a constant value when thephotodiode is fully depleted. The pinned photodiode has a photosensitiveor p-n-p junction region comprising a p-type surface layer 24 and ann-type photodiode region 26 within a p-type active layer 20. The pinnedphotodiode includes two p-type regions 20, 24 so that the n-typephotodiode region is fully depleted at a pinning voltage. Impurity dopedsource/drain regions 22, preferably having n-type conductivity, areprovided about the transistor gates 40, 60, 80. The floating diffusionregion 25 adjacent to transfer gate 50 is also preferable n-type.

In a typical CMOS image sensor, trench isolation regions 28 formed inthe active layer 20 are used to isolate the pixels. FIGS. 1A and 1Billustrate typical STI isolation trenches 28. The trench isolationregions 28 are formed using a typical STI process and are generallyformed by etching a trench in the doped active layer or substrate 20 viaa directional etching process, such as Reactive Ion Etching (RIE), oretching with a preferential anisotropic etchant used to etch into thedoped active layer 20 to a sufficient depth, generally about 1000 to3000 Angstroms.

The trenches are then filled with an insulating material, for example,silicon dioxide, silicon nitride, ON (oxide-nitride), NO(nitride-oxide), or ONO (oxide-nitride-oxide).

The gate stacks for the pixel transistors are formed before or after thetrench is etched. The order of these preliminary process steps may bevaried as is required or convenient for a particular process flow, forexample, if a known photogate sensor (not shown) which overlaps thetransfer gate is desired, the gate stacks must be formed before thephotogate, but if a non-overlapping photogate is desired, the gatestacks may be formed after photogate formation.

A translucent or transparent insulating layer 30 is formed over the CMOSimage sensor. Conventional processing methods are then carried out toform, for example, contacts 32 (shown in FIG. 1A) in the insulatinglayer 30 to provide an electrical connection to the source/drain regions22, the floating diffusion region 25, and other wiring to connect gatelines and other connections in the sensor 10. For example, the entiresurface may then be covered with a passivation layer of e.g., silicondioxide, BSG, PSG, or BPSG, which is planarized and etched to providecontact holes, which are then metallized to provide contacts to thephotogate (if used), reset gate, and transfer gate.

In CMOS image sensors depicted in FIGS. 1A and 1B, electrons aregenerated by light incident externally and stored in the n-typephotodiode region 26. These charges are transferred to the diffusionnode 25 by the gate structure 50 of the transfer transistor. The sourcefollower transistor produces an output signal from the transferredcharges. A maximum output signal is proportional to the number ofelectrons extracted from the n-type photodiode region 26. The maximumoutput signal increases with increased electron capacitance oracceptability of the photodiode. The electron capacity of pinnedphotodiodes typically depends on doping levels and the dopants implantedto form regions 24, 26, 20.

A problem associated with the shallow trench isolation technique isphoton diffusion under the shallow trench isolation structure from onepixel to an adjacent pixel. Attempts have been made to enhance isolationby implanting ions beneath the shallow trench isolation structure.However, these implants result in high current leakage. The inventionprovides a novel technique for improved isolation between adjacentpixels that does not require additional implants beneath the trench,thereby minimizing the generation of dark current in the CMOS imagesensor.

Another consideration in CMOS image sensor fabrication are isolationdesign rules are constructed to make sure that there is enough margin toprevent punch-through in CMOS circuits. For example, the trench 28separates the source/drain regions 22 of one pixel from the active layerof an adjacent pixel. Accordingly shallow trenches are generallysufficiently wide to allow a margin adequate enough to preventpunch-through or current leakage. The invention further provides noveltechniques for preventing current leakage while allowing tighter designrules in CMOS circuits.

A first embodiment according to the invention is now described withreference to FIGS. 2-6. Applicant proposes an STI process, which uses anisolation trench filled with a doped conductive material containingsilicon. Shallow trench isolation regions for CMOS image sensorsgenerally have a depth of less than about 3000 Angstroms and generallyaround about 2000 to about 2500 Angstroms. Typically, shallow trenchregions are filled with a conventional insulator, such as oxides or highdensity plasma (HDP) oxides. However, it is difficult to fill trencheshaving a depth greater than 2500 Angstroms with conventional insulatorsdue to the limited spacing within the trench, for example, undesirablevoids or air gaps are formed when oxides are used to fill trencheshaving a depth greater than about 2500 Angstroms. In accordance with thefirst embodiment of the invention, Applicants propose filling trencheswith conductive materials containing silicon, preferably polysilicon orsilicon-germanium. Conductive materials containing silicon may be easilydeposited into trenches of various depths, unlike conventionalinsulation materials, e.g., silicon dioxide, silicon nitride, NO, ON,HDP, and ONO, which are difficult to fill in deep trenches. Thus, usinga conductive material containing silicon to fill the trench 328 willallow easy formation of a trench, particularly, a deep trench having adepth greater than about 2000 Angstroms, and preferably about 4000 toabout 5000 Angstroms.

Generally, the deeper the trench the better the isolation. With respectto CMOS image sensors in particular, the deeper the trench the higherthe electron storage capacitance of the CMOS image sensor. A trenchaccording to the invention is deeper than a shallow trench, andaccordingly has longer sidewalls than a shallow trench. Therefore, thelonger sidewalls allow for a larger electrical connection region 323along the sidewalls of the trench such that electron storagecapacitance, e.g., hole accumulation, in the electrical connectionregion 323 is increased in accordance with the invention.

In a CMOS image sensor having a trench filled with a conductive materialcontaining silicon in accordance with the present invention, as shown inFIG. 2, a trench 328 is etched into a doped active layer 320. A resistand mask are applied, and photolithographic techniques are used todefine the area to be etched-out. A directional etching process, such asReactive Ion Etching (RIE), or etching with a preferential anisotropicetchant is used to etch into the doped active layer 320 to form thetrench 328. The resist and mask are removed leaving a structure thatappears as shown in FIG. 2.

Referring now to FIG. 3, an oxide, i.e., SiO₂ or other dielectric liner327 is grown within the trench 328. The oxide liner may be formed of NO,ON, or ONO among many other suitable materials. The dielectric liner 327may be substantially conformal. In other words, the thickness of theliner 327 is substantially the same along the sidewalls 319 and at thebottom of the trench 328. In general, the thickness of the dielectricliner 327 along the sidewalls should be at least about 100 Angstroms.

Referring now to FIG. 4, a highly doped (in-situ doped) n-type or p-typeconductive material containing silicon 329 is deposited to fill thetrench 328. Suitable conductive materials containing silicon includepolysilicon and silicon-germanium. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 5,the trench 328 may be filled with a conductive material containingsilicon 329 then, a masked ion implant (indicated by arrows) may beperformed to dope the conductive material containing silicon. Forexample, in the case of a p-type active layer 320, with p-type wells,p-type ions such as boron (B) can be implanted into the conductivematerial containing silicon using a photoresist mask 326. Similarly, inthe case of an n-type active layer 320 with n-type wells, n-type ionssuch as phosphorous (P), arsenic (As), or antimony (Sb) can beimplanted.

Conductive materials containing silicon are easily filled into deeptrenches. The deeper the trench, the harder it is to fill the trenchwith conventional insulators. Oxides and other conventional insulatorsform voids or air gaps when used to fill deep trenches. However, inaccordance with the invention, a trench may be filled with a conductivematerial containing silicon easily and effectively.

An exemplary CMOS image sensor in accordance with the invention andhaving a pinned photodiode 321 is shown in FIG. 6. The pinned photodiode321 has a p-type surface layer 324 and an n-type photodiode region 326within a p-type active layer 320. A junction is formed around theentirety of the n-type region 326. An impurity doped floating diffusionregion 325, preferably having n-type conductivity, is provided on oneside of the channel region of transfer gate 350, the other side of whichhas a portion of n-type region 326. A trench isolation region 328 isformed in the active layer 320 adjacent to but spaced from the n-typeregion 321. An electrical connection region 323 for providing holeaccumulation is formed adjacent the sidewalls of the trench isolationregion 328. The trench isolation region 328 is formed as described abovewith respect to FIGS. 2-5.

The gate stacks, for example the transfer gate 350, may be formed beforeor after the trench is etched. The order of these process steps may bevaried as is required or convenient for a particular process flow, forexample, if a photogate sensor which overlaps the transfer gate isdesired, the gate stacks must be formed before the photogate, but if anon-overlapping photogate is desired, the gate stacks may be formedafter photogate formation.

A translucent or transparent insulating layer 330 is formed over theCMOS image sensor 300. Conventional processing methods are then carriedout to form for example, contacts (not shown) in the insulating layer330 to provide an electrical connection to the source/drain regions 322,the floating diffusion region 325, and other wiring to connect gatelines and other connections in the sensor 300. For example, the entiresurface may then be covered with a passivation layer, of e.g., silicondioxide, BSG, PSG, or BPSG, which is CMP planarized and etched toprovide contact holes, which are then metallized to provide contacts tothe photogate (if used), reset gate, and transfer gate.

The use of a trench in accordance with the invention provides improvedisolation between pixels. The deeper trench better inhibits electronsfrom diffusing under the isolation trench to an adjacent pixel therebypreventing cross-talk between neighboring pixels. Accordingly, byenhancing isolation via a deeper trench, additional implants under thetrench are not necessary, therefore by reducing the implants needed forisolation, current leakage is also reduced. Another advantage of theinvention, is that the use of a deep trench filled with a conductivematerial containing silicon in accordance with the invention provides adeeper hole accumulation region, thereby increasing electron storagecapacity. Also the deeper trench allows for tighter isolation designrules. Deeper trenches may also be narrower than shallow trenches, whilestill providing effective isolation between neighboring regions.Accordingly, the source/drain regions of one pixel may be brought closerto the active layer of an adjacent pixel, by narrowing the width of thedeep trench.

A second embodiment in accordance with the invention is now describedwith reference to FIGS. 7-13. Referring now to FIG. 7, a trench 428 isetched into an active layer 420. The trench is preferably a deep trenchhaving a depth greater than about 2500 Angstroms and preferably betweenabout 4000 to about 5000 Angstroms. A resist and mask are applied, andphotolithographic techniques are used to define the area to beetched-out. A directional etching process, such as RIE, or etching witha preferential anisotropic etchant is used to etch into the doped activelayer 420 to form the trench 428. The resist and mask are removedleaving the FIG. 7 structure.

Referring now to FIG. 8, a nitride liner 432 is formed in the trench 428via Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD). This nitride liner 432 may beformed of any suitable nitride including NO, ON, ONO, and is preferablyformed of silicon nitride.

Referring now to FIG. 9, an oxide, e.g. SiO₂ or other dielectric liner427 is formed within the trench 428 and over the silicon nitride liner432. The liner 427 may be non-conformal, in that its thickness may varyalong the trench sidewalls 429. A relatively thick liner can be formednear the bottom of the trench and a thinner liner formed near the top ofthe trench. Non-conforming materials such as the well-known PSG, BPSG,SOG can be used to produce the liner 427.

Referring now to FIG. 10, a bottom portion of the oxide liner 427 andnitride liner 432 is stripped away. This can be accomplished by ananisotropic dry etch or a masked wet or dry etch.

Referring now to FIG. 11, a selective epitaxial layer 433 is grown tofill the trench 428 with silicon. The epitaxial layer 433 may be grownusing any suitable technique and may be grown as a single layer ormulti-layer. The epitaxial layer 443 is grown in directly on a surfaceof the active layer 420 so as to provides a direct electrical contact tothe doped active layer 420 through the trench while providing improvedfield isolation between pixels. Providing a direct electrical contact tothe active layer in accordance with the invention, eliminates the needfor a top contact, therefore saving space and allowing for tighter pixelformation.

Referring now to FIG. 12, in accordance with yet another embodiment ofthe invention, the selective epitaxial layer 433 is grown to partiallyfill the trench 428 with silicon.

Referring now to FIG. 13, a deposition process is performed to fill therest of the trench with a filler material 434. The filler material ispreferably an oxide material and is more preferably an HDP oxide.Alternatively, a conductive material containing silicon, for examplepolysilicon or silicon-germanium, may also be used to fill the rest ofthe trench 428.

By providing an epitaxial layer 433, the amount of oxide needed to fillthe trench is reduced. Accordingly by using a reduced amount of oxide,or not using oxide in situations where conductive material containingsilicon is used to fill the rest of the trench or when the trench isfilled with the epitaxial layer 433 (as shown in FIG. 11), a deep trenchin accordance with the invention may be formed. As discussed above deeptrenches provide improved isolation and in the case of CMOS imagesensors, prevention of cross-talk between adjacent pixels. And also asdiscussed above with regard to the first embodiment, the use of a deeptrench to provide improved isolation eliminates the need to use excessimplants beneath the trench, thereby reducing dark current in CMOS imagesensors caused by current leakage. A selective-EPI filled or partiallyfilled trench according to the invention may be used in combination withother aspects of the invention, for example, the selective-EPI-partiallyfilled trench may be used along with a deep trench filled with aconductive material containing silicon.

An exemplary CMOS image sensor in accordance with the invention andhaving a pinned photodiode 421 is shown in FIG. 14. The pinnedphotodiode 421 has a p-type surface layer 424 and an n-type photodioderegion 426 within a p-type active layer 420. A junction is formed aroundthe entirety of the n-type region 426. An impurity doped floatingdiffusion region 425, preferably having n-type conductivity, is providedon one side of the channel region of transfer gate 450, the other sideof which has a portion of n-type region 426. A trench isolation region428 is formed in the active layer 420 adjacent to but spaced from n-typeregion 426. An electrical connection region 423 for providing holeaccumulation is formed adjacent the sidewalls of the trench isolationregion 428. The trench isolation region 428 is formed as described abovewith respect to FIGS. 7-13.

The gate stacks, for example transfer gate 450, may be formed before orafter the trench is etched. The order of these preliminary process stepsmay be varied as is required or convenient for a particular processflow, for example, if a photogate sensor which overlaps the transfergate is desired, the gate stacks must be formed before the photogate,but if a non-overlapping photogate is desired, the gate stacks may beformed after photogate formation.

A translucent or transparent insulating layer 430 is formed over theCMOS image sensor 400. Conventional processing methods are then carriedout to form for example, contacts (not shown) in the insulating layer430 to provide an electrical connection to the source/drain regions, thefloating diffusion region 425, and other wiring to connect gate linesand other connections in the sensor 400. For example, the entire surfacemay then be covered with a passivation layer, of e.g., silicon dioxide,BSG, PSG, or BPSG, which is CMP planarized and etched to provide contactholes, which are then metallized to provide contacts to the photogate(if used), reset gate, and transfer gate.

Pixel arrays according to the invention, and described with reference toFIGS. 2-14, may be further processed as known in the art to arrive atCMOS image sensors having the functions and features of those discussedwith reference to FIGS. 2-14.

A typical processor based system, which includes a CMOS image sensoraccording to the invention is illustrated generally at 642 in FIG. 15. Aprocessor based system is exemplary of a system having digital circuits,which could include CMOS image sensors. Without being limiting, such asystem could include a computer system, camera system, scanner, machinevision, vehicle navigation, video phone, surveillance system, auto focussystem, star tracker system, motion detection system, imagestabilization system and data compression system for high-definitiontelevision, all of which can utilize the present invention.

A processor based system, such as a computer system, for examplegenerally comprises a central processing unit (CPU) 644, for example, amicroprocessor, that communicates with an input/output (I/O) device 646over a bus 652. The CMOS image sensor 642 also communicates with thesystem over bus 652. The computer system 600 also includes random accessmemory (RAM) 648, and, in the case of a computer system may includeperipheral devices such as a flash memory card 654, or a compact disk(CD) ROM drive 656 which also communicate with CPU 644 over the bus 652.It may also be desirable to integrate the processor 654, CMOS imagesensor 642 and memory 648 on a single IC chip.

The above description and drawings are only to be consideredillustrative of exemplary embodiments, which achieve the features andadvantages of the invention. Modification and substitutions to specificprocess conditions and structures can be made without departing from thespirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the invention is not tobe considered as being limited by the foregoing description anddrawings, but is only limited by the scope of the appended claims.

1. A method of forming an image sensor, said method comprising the stepsof: forming a substrate; forming an active layer of a first conductivitytype within said substrate; forming a charge transfer region within saidactive layer; forming a photodiode within said active layer adjacentsaid charge transfer region, said step of forming said photodiodecomprising forming a region of a second conductivity type betweenregions of said active layer of said first conductivity type; forming acharge collection region within said active layer for receiving chargestransferred from said photodiode region; and forming an isolation regionadjacent said active layer, by forming a trench at least partiallyfilling said trench with a conductive material.
 2. The method of claim 1wherein said step of forming said trench further comprises forming aninsulating liner along at least sidewalls of said trench.
 3. The methodof claim 1 further comprising doping said conductive material with ann-type conductivity implant.
 4. The method of claim 1 further comprisingdoping said conductive material with a p-type conductivity implant. 5.The method of claim 1 wherein said conductive material comprisessilicon.
 6. The method of claim 5 wherein said conductive materialcomprises polysilicon.
 7. The method of claim 5 wherein said conductivematerial comprises silicon-germanium.
 8. The method of claim 1 whereinsaid step of forming said trench further comprises forming an epitaxiallayer underlying said conductive material.
 9. The method of claim 1wherein said trench is formed to have a depth of between about 1000 toabout 5000 Angstroms.
 10. The method of claim 1 wherein said trench isformed to have a depth of greater than about 2000 Angstroms.
 11. Amethod of forming an image sensor, said method comprising the steps of:forming a trench in a substrate between adjacent pixels; forming aninsulating liner formed along at least one wall of said trench; formingan epitaxial layer in contact with said substrate at a bottom surface ofsaid trench; and forming a conductive material over said epitaxial layerand within said trench.
 12. The method of claim 11 wherein saidinsulating liner comprises an oxide material.
 13. The method of claim 12wherein said insulating liner comprises NO.
 14. The method of claim 12wherein said insulating liner comprises ON.
 15. The method of claim 12wherein said insulating liner comprises ONO.
 16. The method of claim 11wherein said insulating liner is non-conformal.
 17. The method of claim11 further comprising forming a nitride liner formed between said atleast one sidewall of said trench and said insulating liner.
 18. Themethod of claim 17 wherein said nitride liner comprises silicon nitride.19. The method of claim 17 wherein said nitride liner comprises NO. 20.The method of claim 17 wherein said nitride liner comprises ON.
 21. Themethod of claim 17 wherein said nitride liner comprises ONO.
 22. Themethod of claim 11 wherein said filler material comprises silicon. 23.The method of claim 22 wherein said filler material comprisespolysilicon.
 24. The method of claim 22 wherein said filler materialcomprises silicon-germanium.